The Botswana Football Association (BFA) has turned down Zimbabwe’s request to host their 2026 World Cup qualifier against South Africa in Francistown, saying that the venue is unavailable.
Zimbabwe have played all their home games in the qualifying series in South Africa because none of its facilities meet the standard stipulated by the world football governing body, FIFA.
Their next game is against the Bafana Bafana, and to give the Brave Warriors the home advantage they need for victory, they believe that hosting the game in South Africa is as good as playing away against the Group C leaders.
Francistown Sports Complex will host Botswana’s own qualifier against Uganda on October 9, just a day before the scheduled meeting between the Warriors and Bafana Bafana. That clash of dates contravenes FIFA regulations, which require that visiting teams be given access to match venues the day before a fixture.
What this means is that Zimbabwe could be forced to take the game to South Africa, either at the Orlando Stadium in Johannesburg, or Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban, which have served as temporary “home” grounds in previous years when Zimbabwean facilities failed to meet international standards.
According to iol.co.za, reports at the weekend suggested Moses Mabhida was the favoured choice, though no confirmation has come from the South African Football Association, as the final decision rests with the Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA).
The report said that ZIFA is not impressed by BFA’s decision, condemning its public announcement as premature.
“It is ZIFA’s prerogative to pick a venue that suits our interests. Zimbabwe will always make decisions that are in the interests of the Warriors and Zimbabwean football,” ZIFA’s spokesman, Mike Madoda, said.
Madoda also rejected speculation that ZIFA had been swayed by financial inducements to stage the match in South Africa, dismissing such claims as baseless.
He underlined that venue selection remains an internal process, carried out with independence and integrity.
Zimbabwe is already out of contention for the World Cup ticket as they sit at the bottom of the Group C table with four points from eight matches.
South Africa leads the group on 17 points, followed by Benin Republic (14) and Nigeria (11).
